Nuclear Safety

Although safety problems with nuclear reactors in the former Soviet Union and eastern Europe have received widespread attention, many other nuclear facilities and other sources of radiation in the former Soviet Union also pose safety, health, and environmental threats. For example, a 1993 accident at a plutonium processing plant in Russia highlighted safety problems associated with these types of facilities. This report provides information on (1) nuclear facilities (other than civil nuclear power reactors), nuclear-powered vessels, and other sources of radiation in the former Soviet Union; (2) the views of U.S. and international experts on the safety of these facilities and other sources of radiation; and (3) U.S. and international efforts to address nuclear safety and environmental problems with these facilities and other sources of radiation.

GAO found that: (1) the former Soviet Union has at least 221 nuclear facilities operating, 99 of which are located in Russia; (2) as many as 20,000 organizations throughout the former Soviet Union are using various types of radiation for medicine, industry, and research; (3) aging facilities and equipment, inadequate technology, a lack of commitment to safety, the absence of independent nuclear regulatory bodies, and a lack of funding are contributing to unsafe conditions in the former Soviet Union; (4) efforts are under way to study the radiological effects of operating nuclear facilities and nuclear-powered submarines; and (6) the United States has committed $55 million to support programs focusing on the environmental and health effects caused by the production of nuclear weapons in the former Soviet Union.